Children and young people’s mental health

Information to help your child with mental health issues.

Support for parents, families, children and young people

Care, education and treatment reviews (CETR)

A CETR is a meeting about a child or young person who:

  • has a learning disability and / or autism

  • is at risk of being admitted to hospital

  • is in hospital

A CETR meeting should happen before any decisions are made about whether hospital care is right. This looks at why your child might need to go into hospital and whether extra support can be given at home instead.

This information gives a brief overview of the CETR programme (Care, Education and Treatment Review) which NHS England provides.

A CETR meeting brings together:

  • the child/young person and their family

  • people who commission and provide services (e.g. nurses, social workers, commissioners and other health, education and social care professionals)

  • an independent clinical adviser

  • an expert adviser who will be someone with lived experience of having a learning disability or autism or a family carer

At the CETR meeting, they seek the views and experience of the family and carers and the young person themselves to make sure that all options have been exhausted when it comes to supporting the young person to remain in their local community.

They also seek to understand how local services are able to support the young person and identify any barriers to accessing that provision. They make suggestions as to any other options or opportunities which could help the young person live and thrive in the community.

A 'Key Lines of Enquiry' form will be completed in this meeting. This helps put together a summary and feedback for the child or young person.

Information, advice or support

Find out more from:

Requests for CETRs are usually made through the professional team but can be requested directly by a person or their family where needed.